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NAB Files Comments In FCC Ownership Review
WASHINGTON -- October 3, 2007: In comments filed in response to an FCC Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the NAB expresses its "general support for policies that create industry incentives to increase minority and female ownership and participation in the broadcast industry."
"Specifically," the group continues, "NAB encourages the commission to adopt policies that emphasize public/private partnerships and rely on market-based stimulants to boost minority and female ownership."
The FCC in August issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking requesting comments on several diversity-related proposals from the Minority Media & Telecommunications Council. After briefly describing some NABEF education programs designed to increase female and minority participation in the broadcast industry, the NAB says it would like to see the tax incentive for selling to minorities and women be reinstated, calling the incentive a "proven program."
Moving on to the MMTC proposals, the NAB says some proposals "rely on a clear and workable definition of Social and Economically Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs)" and that any effort to come up with a strict definition could easily end up in court, potentially delaying the implementation of valuable programs. The NAB notes that the FCC has in the past used small-business and "new entrant" categories as a "race- and gender-neutral" ways to promote diversity.
The NAB does support an MMTC proposal to allow grandfathered clusters that exceed the numerical ownership caps to be sold whole to any third party if the buyer agrees to sell above-cap stations to qualified small businesses, and an MMTC proposal for "incubator" programs that could, the NAB says, "provide thousands of disadvantaged businesses and individuals with the seed money and education to excel in the broadcast business."
The NAB also supports programs to provide better access to capital by encouraging banks and other lenders to provide financing to qualified small businesses, and points to forums NABEF and the MMTC held with Clear Channel and Citadel, both of which are selling broadcast properties, to connect the companies with minority and female potential buyers.
The NAB concludes with a note on diversity as it related to the larger ownership-rules review, asking the FCC to "avoid unwarranted and unproven assumptions that modernizing the local broadcast ownership rules will result in fewer opportunities for women and minorities."
The FCC should, says the NAB, implement policies that ensure broadcasters can continue to compete, adding, "Initiatives to promote diversity in broadcasting would be moot in an environment where radio and television stations are held back from effectively competing in an ever-expanding digital media marketplace."
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